Virgil van Dijk’s return to the Liverpool camp is of paramount importance to Jurgen Klopp who was without his star central defender for the majority of the previous campaign.
Klopp will have his Dutch defensive colossus to count upon once again when the new season gets underway with Van Dijk set to stage a return to on-field action when Liverpool play German side Hertha Berlin come Thursday in their pre-season commitments this summer ahead of a season that is eagerly awaited by the Liverpool supporters.
Van Dijk had been ruled out of the 2020-21 season after being involved in a nasty collision with Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford during last October’s Merseyside derby which finished in a thrilling 2-2 stalemate.
An ACL injury diagnosis meant that the former Saints centre-back was in line to miss the remainder of the season, dealing a hammer blow to Liverpool’s chances of mounting a heroic defence of their Premier League crown.
Klopp while speaking to Liverpool’s official website revealed that Van Dijk was in line to feature for a few minutes in his side’s forthcoming pre-season clash with the Liverpool boss adding that the defender had looked in good shape during the training sessions.
‘I hope, I am not sure, that there is the opportunity that Virgil could play a few minutes.’
‘He looks really good in training and maybe we can bring [him in], but I need to have some final conversations. He looks ready and we will see.’
Van Dijk’s return to the football pitch is bound to give Klopp a major boost on Liverpool’s injury fortunes which had dwindled last time around with Van Dijk’s sideline being followed up by season-ending injuries for his centre-back partners Joe Gomez and Joel Matip.
This summer window saw Liverpool open their chequebook to bring in the highly-rated French defender Ibrahima Konate from RB Leipzig on a five-year-long deal meaning Klopp has another quality talent to draft in the heart of the backline should the need arise in the upcoming campaign which gets underway in less than three weeks from now.
A much-bolstered backline for Liverpool next season means that the supporters will bet on their team to forget the failures of the previous campaign which at one stage gave out strong signs of Klopp’s men missing out on Champions League football.
Season-ending injury layoffs for the Van Dijk-Gomez-Matip trio had forced Klopp to draft the likes of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, his trusted options in the midfield area, at centre-back as Liverpool went through a severe crisis of lack of options to field at the back upon the turn of the year.
In came Nat Phillips, who alongside January window’s recruit Ozan Kabak, managed to bring some much-needed stability to the Liverpool defence as the Merseysiders got back on track in the backend of the domestic campaign to mount a tough challenge for a top-four finish.
With Champions League football in the bag for the upcoming season for the Liverpool camp, what remains to be seen is whether Klopp ships out the unlikely Anfield hero in Nat Phillips who remains a top target for a couple of teams in the Premier League.
Burnley and Brighton have been backed to make a move for the central defender who is in line to fall down the pecking order once again following the return of the injured first-team regulars at Anfield coupled with Konate’s big-money signing earlier this summer window.
The Reds are sure to fetch a £15 million transfer fee for parting ways with Phillips should he head out the exit door, which looks quite certain to happen before the summer transfer window slams shut.
Liverpool have other priorities in the transfer market for now with a new face in the central midfield area the need of the hour for Jurgen Klopp and his backroom staff considering Gini Wijnaldum calling it quits to seal a shock move to Paris Saint-Germain.
Uncertainties growing over the long-term future of skipper and midfield anchor Jordan Henderson adds to Klopp’s woes for this summer with Atletico Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain circling around for the signature of the 31-year-old England international whose contract extension talks with the Liverpool board seems to have hit a major roadblock.
Henderson’s presence on the Liverpool teamsheet does not need any validation from us but it remains well-documented that the Reds skipper has his hold on the club’s actions both on and off the football pitch.
For now, Liverpool have a well-stocked defensive department with old names in line to stage returns to on-field action and a new recruit hoping to make it big on Merseyside, meaning Jurgen Klopp will be counting upon his playing staff to replicate their 2019-20 success and bring Premier League glory back to Anfield.
